28
|
M
|
La vida
W
hile by no means a new phenomenon, the vegetarian lie-style has earned increasing numbers o adherents in theWest over the past decade. While some vegetarians consid-er their choice to eat a meatless diet as a sacrice or better health,many see it instead as an integral part o a liestyle that embodies re-spect or all living creatures, animal rights and a wholesome, healthyplanet. Many cities have developed multiple resources or vegetar-ians, helping oster not only a meatless diet, but vegetarianism as anactive attitude about making a better world.In recent years, the preerence orplant-based ood and beverages, ani-mal cruelty-ree cosmetic productsand clothes that don’t require the kill-ing o animals to be manuactured hasmade itsel a commercial orce. Even‘mega’ corporations like Starbucks,Subway and Burger King are address-ing vegetarian and vegan diets amongtheir customers, oering dairy-reebeverages and vegetarian meals around the globe. It is sae to saythat vegetarianism has irreversibly entered the mainstream.However, in blogs and on-line orums, anxious rst-time visitorsto this city oten worry along the lines o, “Oh my God, I’m going toBarcelona. What will I eat?” Even Wikipedia, in its page on Euro-pean vegetarianism, claims: “In Spain, most ‘vegetarian’ meals willbe served with egg, or even tuna, even i vegetarians are not that un-common; however, most ood companies and markets simply do notcare about it.” But in reality, although Spain isn’t necessarily knownor vegetarian inclinations, once in Barcelona the vegetarian’s wor-ries are quickly dispelled.In Barcelona, there are over 40 restaurants and markets dedicatedto providing meat-ree meals, according to Happy Cow, one o theworld’s largest on-line vegetarian guides, and the gure is echoed bythe Barcelona-based web or vegetarians, Sin Carne. A poll by theHappy Cow guides recently listed New York, San Francisco, London,Singapore and Portland, Oregon as the top ve places or provid-ing an easy, enjoyable vegetarian liestyle. And although Barcelonaisn’t even ound amongst the runner-ups (Chiang Mai in Thailand,Toronto, Canada, and Taipei, Taiwan), it still ranks 19th in the worldin the number o vegetarian res-taurants and caés, coming in justater San Francisco. With placeslike Amaltea, Veg World, Sesamo,Vegetalia, Juicy Jones, Maoz andOrganic, the Catalan capital seemsequipped to respond to any vegetar-ian caprice.“The attitudes towards the con-cept o vegetarianism have denitelychanged over the last decade in Barcelona,” said Mads Rademacher,the Danish man whose Juicy Jones oers a vegan alternative—–mealsthat don’t contain any animal by-products—to Barcelona’s ‘old-ashioned’ vegetarian cuisine with less favour, eggs and dairy in theingredients, and an oten unappetising presentation. The vegan lie-style opposes all orms o cruelty to animals, and its adherents eat nocheese, eggs or butter, and wear no clothes or shoes made o leather.It is not popular in Barcelona, although the concept isn’t unknown,and groups like Acción Vegana do exist. In addition to Juicy Jones,other places cater to vegans, like the venerable vegetarian Indianrestaurant Govinda, which was the rst in the city to do so.
“Oh my God, I’m going toBarcelona. What will I eat?”
Barcelona is becomingvegetarian-friendly.
Eat your veggies
It’s growing ever easier to live here as a vegetarian.By Steana Serafna. Photos by Susana Grau.
28-29. vegetarian-4.indd 3422/1/09 14:24:04
Leave a Comment